Legal News

In our continuing effort to provide information related to Social Security’s new listings on mental impairments we are going to look at changes made to the listing for schizophrenia. And, as just a reminder, Social Security’s set of listings are used in evaluating disability claims judging a condition’s severity and how it limits a person’s ability to function. We will post the current listing for schizophrenia followed by the new listing, which will take effect January 17, 2017. Current Schizophrenia Listing 12.03 Schizophrenic, paranoid and other psychotic disorders: Characterized by the onset of psychotic features with deterioration from a previous level of functioning. The required level of severity for these disorders is met when the requirements in both A and B are satisfied, or when the requirements in C are satisfied. Medically documented persistence, either continuous or intermittent, of one or more of the following: Delusions or hallucinations; or Catatonic or other grossly disorganized behavior; or Incoherence, loosening of associations, illogical thinking, or poverty of content of speech if associated with one of the following: Blunt affect; or Flat affect; or Inappropriate affect; or Emotional withdrawal and/or isolation; AND Resulting in at least two of the following: Marked restriction of activities of daily living; or Marked difficulties in maintaining social functioning; or Marked difficulties in maintaining concentration, persistence, or pace; or Repeated episodes of decompensation, each of extended duration; OR Medically documented history of a chronic schizophrenic, paranoid, or other psychotic disorder of at least 2 years’ duration that has caused more than a minimal limitation of ability to do basic work activities, with symptoms or signs currently attenuated by medication or psychosocial support, and one of the following: Repeated episodes of decompensation, each of extended duration; or A residual disease process that has resulted in such marginal adjustment that even a minimal increase in mental demands or change in the environment would be predicted to cause the individual to decompensate; or Current history of 1 or more years’ inability to function outside a highly supportive living arrangement, with an indication of continued need for such an arrangement. New Schizophrenia Listing 12.03 Schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders, satisfied by A and B, or A and C: Medical documentation of one or more of the following: Delusions or hallucinations; Disorganized thinking (speech); or Grossly disorganized behavior or catatonia. AND Extreme limitation of one, or marked limitation of two, of the following areas of mental functioning: Understand, remember, or apply information. Interact with others. Concentrate, persist, or maintain pace. Adapt or manage oneself. OR Your mental disorder in this listing category is “serious and persistent;” that is, you have a medically documented history of the existence of the disorder over a period of at least 2 years, and there is evidence of both: Medical treatment, mental health therapy, psychosocial support(s), or a highly structured setting(s) that is ongoing and that diminishes the symptoms and signs of your mental disorder; and Marginal adjustment, that is, you have minimal capacity to adapt to changes in your environment or to demands that are not already part of your daily life.

In our continuing effort to provide information related to Social Security’s new listings on mental impairments we are going to look at changes made to the Personality Disorder listing. And, as just a reminder, Social Security’s set of listings are used in evaluating disability claims judging a condition’s severity and how it limits a person’s ability to function. We will post the current listing for Personality Disorder followed by the new listing, which will take effect January 17, 2017. Current Personality Disorder Listing 12.08 Personality disorders: A personality disorder exists when personality traits are inflexible and maladaptive and cause either significant impairment in social or occupational functioning or subjective distress. Characteristic features are typical of the individual’s long-term functioning and are not limited to discrete episodes of illness. The required level of severity for these disorders is met when the requirements in both A and B are satisfied. Deeply ingrained, maladaptive patterns of behavior associated with one of the following: Seclusiveness or autistic thinking; or Pathologically inappropriate suspiciousness or hostility; or Oddities of thought, perception, speech and behavior; or Persistent disturbances of mood or affect; or Pathological dependence, passivity, or aggressivity; or Intense and unstable interpersonal relationships and impulsive and damaging behavior; AND Resulting in at least two of the following: Marked restriction of activities of daily living; or Marked difficulties in maintaining social functioning; or Marked difficulties in maintaining concentration, persistence, or pace; or Repeated episodes of decompensation, each of extended duration. New Personality Disorder Listing 12.08 Personality and impulse-control disorders, satisfied by A and B: Medical documentation of a pervasive pattern of one or more of the following: Distrust and suspiciousness of others; Detachment from social relationships; Disregard for and violation of the rights of others; Instability of interpersonal relationships; Excessive emotionality and attention seeking; Feelings of inadequacy; Excessive need to be taken care of; Preoccupation with perfectionism and orderliness; or Recurrent, impulsive, aggressive behavioral outbursts. AND Extreme limitation of one, or marked limitation of two, of the following areas of mental functioning: Understand, remember, or apply information. Interact with others. Concentrate, persist, or maintain pace. Adapt or manage oneself.

In our continuing effort to provide information related to Social Security’s new listings on mental impairments we are going to look at changes made to the Neurocognitive Disorder listing. And, as just a reminder, Social Security’s set of listings are used in evaluating disability claims judging a condition’s severity and how it limits a person’s ability to function. We will post the current listing for Neurocognitive Disorder followed by the new listing, which will take effect January 17, 2017. Current Neurocognitive Disorder Listing 12.02 Organic mental disorders: Psychological or behavioral abnormalities associated with a dysfunction of the brain. History and physical examination or laboratory tests demonstrate the presence of a specific organic factor judged to be etiologically related to the abnormal mental state and loss of previously acquired functional abilities. The required level of severity for these disorders is met when the requirements in both A and B are satisfied, or when the requirements in C are satisfied. Demonstration of a loss of specific cognitive abilities or affective changes and the medically documented persistence of at least one of the following: Disorientation to time and place; or Memory impairment, either short-term (inability to learn new information), intermediate, or long-term (inability to remember information that was known sometime in the past); or Perceptual or thinking disturbances (e.g., hallucinations, delusions); or Change in personality; or Disturbance in mood; or Emotional lability (e.g., explosive temper outbursts, sudden crying, etc.) and impairment in impulse control; or Loss of measured intellectual ability of at least 15 I.Q. points from premorbid levels or overall impairment index clearly within the severely impaired range on neuropsychological testing, e.g., the Luria-Nebraska, Halstead-Reitan, etc; AND Resulting in at least two of the following: Marked restriction of activities of daily living; or Marked difficulties in maintaining social functioning; or Marked difficulties in maintaining concentration, persistence, or pace; or Repeated episodes of decompensation, each of extended duration; OR Medically documented history of a chronic organic mental disorder of at least 2 years’ duration that has caused more than a minimal limitation of ability to do basic work activities, with symptoms or signs currently attenuated by medication or psychosocial support, and one of the following: Repeated episodes of decompensation, each of extended duration; or A residual disease process that has resulted in such marginal adjustment that even a minimal increase in mental demands or change in the environment would be predicted to cause the individual to decompensate; or Current history of 1 or more years’ inability to function outside a highly supportive living arrangement, with an indication of continued need for such an arrangement. New Neurocognitive Disorder Listing 12.02 Neurocognitive disorders, satisfied by A and B, or A and C: Medical documentation of a significant cognitive decline from a prior level of functioning in one or more of the cognitive areas: Complex attention; Executive function Learning and memory; Language; Perceptual – motor; or Social cognition. AND Extreme limitation of one, or marked limitation of two, of the following areas of mental functioning: Understand, remember, or apply information. Interact with others. Concentrate, persist, or maintain pace. Adapt or manage oneself. Your mental disorder in this listing category is “serious and persistent;” that is, you have a medically documented history of the existence of the disorder over a period of at least 2 year s, and there is evidence of both: Medical treatment, mental health therapy, psychosocial support(s), or a highly structured setting(s) that is ongoing and that diminishes the symptoms and signs of your mental disorder; and Marginal adjustment, that is, you have minimal capacity to adapt to changes in your environment or to demands that are not already part of your daily life.